VON-blackberries

"I am proud of the Von blackberry! This is the new blackberry variety: a successor to the traditional Loch Ness blackberry. For both the plant breeder, grower and consumer, the blackberry has improved product characteristics which made it the winning variety in our search," says Klaas de Jager (Senior agronomist, The Greenery). "In 2014, we started our search for a better-tasting - less sour and therefore sweeter - blackberry variety for consumers. And, for the grower, the new variety should give a better harvest performance," Klaas stresses.

Improved taste, yield and quality

The Von blackberry has many improved characteristics, including taste, yield, quality, size and shelf life. The blackberry is sweeter than its sour predecessor. "Our expectation is that this new blackberry will be popular among consumers, mainly because of its flavour," shares Klaas de Jager. "And that because of its sweet taste, it will lead to more re-purchases and increased sales within the blackberry category." The plants grow in an ascending growth, which also means lower tethering costs for a plant grower.

Commercial opportunities grower and retailer

Klaas de Jager: "We have been working with the Von blackberry for more than five years: in trials, and for more than three years in commercial production. We are now convinced that the Von-bram offers real benefits, both for growers at The Greenery and for our Retail customers. For the grower, picking performance is greatly improved: it reduces harvesting costs by around 30% compared to previous varieties grown in the same production system. This is because the fruits are larger and more visible in the crop. The improved flavour and shelf life set the Von blackberry apart from the regular range, which is why we offer this variety in our premium label 'Sweet and Sunny'.

Grower Van Hoorn; "The picking performance of the blackberry has greatly improved with the Von variety. The fruits are bigger and more visible in the crop. This reduces harvesting costs by about 30%!" Grower Van Hoorn; "The picking performance of the blackberry has greatly improved with the Von variety. This is because the fruits are bigger and more visible in the crop. This reduces harvesting costs by about 30%!"

Grower Van Hoorn; "The picking performance of the blackberry has greatly improved with the Von variety. The fruits are bigger and more visible in the crop. This reduces harvesting costs by about 30%!" Grower Van Hoorn; "The picking performance of the blackberry has greatly improved with the Von variety. This is because the fruits are bigger and more visible in the crop. This reduces harvesting costs by about 30%!"

Von blackberry deserves prominent place

Only a small part of the volume within the Soft Fruit category comes from the blackberry; this makes it a niche product. However, the number of fans is growing1; the volume of blackberries sold in 2023 showed a 20% growth! A great opportunity for retailers to capitalise on by giving the Von blackberry a prominent place on the shelf. The Greenery is fully committed to enticing even more consumers to eat Von blackberries and other soft fruits more often. This sweet Von-bram is therefore also ironclad in combination with the (Inspire) strawberry and (Lagorai) raspberry. We present growers and recipes on the website www.verseoogst.nl.

Sustainable blackberry cultivation

Blackberries, like raspberries, are very suitable for sustainable growing under solar panels. In cooperation with The Greenery grower Piet Albers, we ran a pilot in the summer of a 2023. This was so successful that we are now working out commercial plans for further scale-up. "Blackberries thrive in semi-shade. That also makes it very suitable for growing under solar panels. This dual function of blackberry cultivation is good both for the consumer who gets a very good product and for the environment."